A Dictionary of Music and Musicians/Ditson, Oliver, and Co.

^[1]DITSON, Oliver, & Co. The oldest music-publishing house in the United States now engaged in business, as well as the largest. Its headquarters are at Boston, where the senior partner has followed the business since 1823, when, at the age of 12, he entered the employ of Samuel H. Parker, a book and music seller. On reaching his majority in 1832, Ditson was taken into partnership by his employer, and the firm, Parker & Ditson, continued until 1845, when, on the retirement of Parker, the business was carried on by Ditson in his own name until 1857, when John C. Haynes was admitted a partner, and the style, Oliver Ditson & Co., was adopted. Ditson's eldest son, Charles H., was admitted in 1867, and was placed in charge of the New York branch, Charles H. Ditson & Co. In 1875 another son, J. Edward, became a member of the firm, and the head of the Philadelphia branch, J. Edward Ditson & Co. In 1860 a branch was established in Boston for the importation and sale of band and orchestral instruments and other musical merchandise, under the name of John C. Haynes & Co. A further branch has existed in Chicago since 1864, styled Lyon & Healy, who transact a general business in music and musical merchandise with the growing country that lies to the westward. The catalogue of sheet music published by the house and its four branches embraces over 51,000 titles. Some 2000 other titles—instruction books, operas, oratorios, masses, collections of psalmody and of secular choral music, in fact every variety of music and text book known to the trade are also included in the list of publications bearing the imprint of the firm. [App. p.819 "date of death of Oliver Ditson, Dec. 21, 1888"]

[ F. H. J. ]

1. Copyright 1889 by F. H. Jenks.